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ELSS Mutual Funds – All You Need To Know About Tax Saving Funds

Ashok Bhat

17 Oct 2017

ELSS Mutual Funds are getting very popular with users because of the benefits they offer – higher returns, lower lock-in and lower minimum investments. In this guide we cover everything you ought to know about ELSS Funds to save tax.

Invest In Mutual Funds

What this means is that when the tax is calculated, it will be calculated based on the amount that is left after reducing ₹1.5 lakhs from your annual income in any given fiscal year.

Example: If you earn ₹4.5 lakh in a year, you are in the tax bracket that is taxed at 5% per annum. So by investing in an ELSS mutual fund, you can save up to ₹15,000. Similarly, if you were in a higher tax bracket, you could save even more as the rate applicable on your income is greater.

This table below shows how much you could save depending on how much you earn.

Income Slab

Tax Rate

Savings by ELSS

Up to ₹2.5 lakh

Nil

N/A

₹2.5 to ₹5 lakh

5%

₹7,500

₹5 to ₹10 lakh

20%

₹30,000

₹10 lakh & more

30%

₹45,000

What are ELSS Mutual Funds?

In our country, the government alone cannot support everybody’s basic needs. So it encourages people to save money. However, just saving is not enough. As you might be familiar, money loses value over a period of time. This is often referred to as loss of purchasing power. Inflation erodes the value of money.

To counter inflation, it is necessary to invest for the future. Even to simply prevent the erosion of the value of your money, your money needs to earn an annual interest greater than the inflation of that year.

Many people simply look at the rate of return their investment has provided in a year and think they have made money. Whereas, the actual return would be the amount you would have made after subtracting the inflation of that year and also accounting for the tax applicable on the returns.

Thus, the government recognizes that they must encourage investing too. This is why the government allows tax breaks for people who invest in certain investment instruments. One of those channels is ELSS mutual funds.

ELSS funds are tax saving mutual funds

ELSS stands for Equity Linked Savings Scheme. The government makes policies to achieve goals they think are necessary for the country’s good as a whole.

ELSS mutual funds come with a 3 year lock-in period. This lock-in period is also a part of the government’s plan to help investors gain in the long term. Most investors often panic when the markets fall. At such times, they end up selling their investments at a lower price than at which they had originally bought.

However, over a longer period of time, investments usually perform well. Thus, to protect investors from their own panic moves, the government has mandated a lock-in period of 3 years. Interestingly, this lock-in period of 3 years is the lowest lock-in period among all other tax saving schemes.

Quick Intro To Section 80C

ELSS mutual funds are a part of exemptions under Section 80C. Below are most the ways you can save tax under Section 80C.

ELSS Mutual Funds

The benefits received from investing in ELSS funds are a part of Section 80C. When you invest in any ELSS mutual funds, your money is invested by the mutual fund in the equity (or stock) markets.

Equity markets provide much higher returns when compared to investment options like fixed deposits, recurring deposits, and so on.

Section 80C has a maximum limit of ₹1.5 lakh. There are other benefits to be had from Section 80C too though it can be argued that ELSS mutual funds have provided the highest returns among all other options under Section 80C.

Public Provident Fund (PPF)

PPF gives a fixed rate of return. This rate is decided by the Finance Ministry every year. This fiscal year, the rate is 7.8% compounded annually.

The amount that is invested in PPF is deductible from your annual income subject to an upper limit of ₹1.5 lakh. It comes with a lock-in period of 15 years and money invested in it cannot be withdrawn before the end of that period. The interest earned by the PPF is tax-free.

If however, you need money very desperately, you have the option of taking a loan against the amount in the PPF account.

Employer’s Provident Fund (EPF)

The employer’s contribution to the provident fund is also eligible for tax deductions. 12% of the salary is deducted by employers and put in the employee’s EPF account.

National Pension Scheme (NPS)

National Pension Scheme is a pension scheme by the Indian government. It was designed to provide people working in the unorganized sectors with a pension.

Again, the maximum tax benefit that can be had for tax purposes is ₹1.5 lakh.

NPS has a limited exposure to the equity markets which is 50%. Also, people can opt to change their fund managers from among the designated list of managers.

The returns are not guaranteed.

One major disadvantage to NPS is that the returns upon maturity are taxable. Learn more about NPS.

Unit Linked Insurance Plans (ULIP)

These are part insurance and part investment plans. A part of the money is put in insurance and the rest is invested in the equity market.

Because this plan is linked to the equity markets, the returns are not guaranteed.

ULIP is often accused of being ambiguous. The expense ratio, commission, place of investment, etc are not revealed and therefore remain unknown.

Investment in ULIP is can also be deducted from your total taxable income. A maximum of ₹1.5 lakh can be deducted from the total taxable income using ULIP.

Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY)

The parent or guardian of a girl child can invest in this scheme in the name of the girl child. The maturity period of this scheme is 21 years. Partial withdrawal of up to 50% of the amount is allowed after the girl child turns 18 years old.

The current rate at this point in time is fixed at 8.3% compounded annually.

Senior Citizens Savings Scheme (SCSS)

Only people over the age of 60 years and those above 55 years of age who have retired can opt for this scheme. It offers a fixed interest of 8.3% per annum with a lock-in period of 5 years.

Like the others on this list, you can get benefits of up to ₹1.5 lakh on investments made in this scheme.

National Savings Certificate (NSC)

They offer a return on 7.8% and come with a maturity period of 5 years. the interest is compounded annually and is taxable.

Investments in NSC can be made from designated post offices.

Tax benefits worth a maximum of ₹1.5 lakh can be had from NSC.

Fixed Deposit (FD)

Fixed deposits are easily one of the most popular investment options in India. While fixed deposits do not have a lock-in period, tax saving fixed deposits do. A 5-year lock-in period exists on fixed deposits eligible for tax breaks.

Fixed deposit rates these days are hovering around 6.50% for different banks.

Tuition Fee

Tuition fee for a maximum of two children is also deductible from your taxable income for up to a maximum limit of ₹1.5 lakh. The educational institute should be in India and the course should be a full-time course for the tuition fee to be deductible under Section 80C.

Repayment of Home Loan

The component of your EMI that is against the payment of the principal can be deducted from your taxable income.

Life Insurance Premium

Premium paid for insurance in your name, your spouse’s name or your children’s name can be deducted from your taxable income up to a maximum limit of ₹1.5 lakh.

Most Imp Things to Note About Section 80C

Only a maximum of ₹1.5 lakh can be deducted as benefits under Section 80C. This means if any one of the above-mentioned methods is already giving you a tax benefit of ₹1.5 lakh, you cannot take more benefit under Section 80C.

Example: Let’s say your child’s annual tuition fee is ₹70,000. And, the principal part of your home loan EMI is an annual ₹50,000. Then, Only ₹30,000 worth of benefit is left to be had under Section 80C. So if you invest ₹30,000 in any of the other schemes coming under Section 80C, you will have taken maximum benefit of Section 80C.

I Have Taken Full Benefit of Section 80C. Should I Still Invest in ELSS Mutual Funds?

The maximum benefit you can have under Section 80C is worth ₹1.5 lakh. If you are able to get benefits under Section 80C by virtue unavoidable expenses like children’s tuition fee and home loan, then invest only the balance amount in ELSS funds.

Let’s understand this with the help of an example.

Let’s take the case of Rakesh. He earns ₹6,00,000 per annum. His annual EPF contribution is ₹23,760. He also has a child whose school fee is ₹80,000 per annum.

Source

Amount

1.

EPF

₹23,760

2.

Tuition Fee

₹80,000

3.

Home Loan Component

₹30,000

Total

₹1,33,760

So here we see that Rakesh can already claim benefits of up to ₹1,33,760. So, to save tax further, he must invest ₹16,240 in an ELSS fund.

If ELSS funds give good returns, shouldn’t I invest more in them?

ELSS mutual funds are a very good alternative to other tax saving schemes under Section 80C. And it is therefore easy to see why anyone would want to invest in them.

The reason you are not recommended to invest more than needed in ELSS funds is that there are mutual funds that are even better than ELSS funds.

Several equity mutual funds give similar returns without any lock-in period for similar levels of risk. In fact, if you are willing to take some more risk, you can easily get even higher returns.

Advantage of ELSS Mutual Funds

Investing in ELSS mutual funds has several advantages over investing in other investment options under section 80C.

Advantage Against Public Provident Fund (PPF)

PPF returns a rate of 7.8% guaranteed. Whereas ELSS funds do not guarantee you a fixed return.

However, good ELSS mutual funds have given returns 15 and 20% in the past. So if you choose your ELSS fund properly, you should be able to earn a lot more than what you would have earned if you invested in PPF.

Later in this article, we will show you how to choose a good ELSS mutual fund to invest.

Obviously, ELSS mutual funds are riskier. But if you are willing to take some risk, you stand to gain major benefits.

Example: For example, let us take the interest from an ELSS fund to be 17.5% while PPF gives a rate of 7.8%.

If you invest ₹1.5 lakh, at the end of three years, you will have ₹1,87,908 if you invest in PPF and ₹2,43,335 if you invest in an ELSS fund. That is a difference of ₹55,427 in 3 years. And this is when you invested only ₹1.5 lakh.

Advantage Against National Pension Scheme (NPS)

If you want to invest in National Pension Scheme, you must be prepared to hold your investment until your retirement at the age of 60. If you are young, that is a long way off.

Besides, the returns earned on NPS are taxable making them a very poor proposition for investment.

ELSS funds are locked-in only for 3 years and the returns are not taxable.

Advantage Against Unit Linked Insurance Plans (ULIP)

ULIP is part insurance and part mutual fund. As mentioned before, a part of the amount is used for insurance while the rest is invested in the equity markets.

Insurance is absolutely essential. Doing an insurance just to save tax is not the best way to save tax though.

ULIP does not reveal many key metrics like expense ratio, commission, etc. At the same time, because they are equity-linked, they do carry with them the risk that comes with being associated with the equity markets. The lack of transparency makes judging ULIP tougher.

ELSS funds are equity-linked too however they reveal all key metrics that are used to judge any investment. So an investor wanting to invest can take a sound decision as to which fund he wants to invest in.

Advantage Against Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY)

Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana on the face of it is a wonderful initiative by the government of India. To the average parent of a girl child, such a scheme can lead to a much more secure future.

However, ELSS is better in that it has offered a rate of return much higher than that assured by SSY.

Besides, the lock-in period in case of SSY is very long too.

Advantage Against Senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS)

With a lock-in period of 5 years, Senior Citizen Savings Scheme locks in money for much longer than ELSS does. However, it provides with a fixed return of 8.6% which is better than what a fixed deposit would give.

Senior citizens usually like to stay away from risk and hence SCSS might make good sense.

If on the other hand, a senior citizen is willing to stomach some risk, he should explore investing in ELSS funds to save tax. ELSS funds have the potential to offer the highest returns among the options listed under Section 80C.

Advantage Against National Savings Scheme (NSC)

National Savings Scheme offers an annual interest of 7.8% which is guaranteed. It too has a lock-in period of 5 years.

As mentioned in the case of SCSS, investing in NSC can offer much higher returns with a lock-in period that is much lower if you can take some risk.

Advantage Against Fixed Deposits (FD)

Different banks offer different rates of return. This rate is around 6.50% these days. In order for your fixed deposit to be eligible for tax benefits, it needs to be locked-in for 5 years.

Doing a fixed deposit for tax saving purposes does not seem like a very good idea. This is largely due to the very low rate offered by fixed deposits.

ELSS funds, on the other hand, offer much higher returns with a lower lock-in period.

How to Choose ELSS Mutual Funds?

Various properties of mutual funds need to be inspected before choosing a mutual fund to invest in.

1. Make sure the mutual fund is an ELSS fund

You will get tax deductions under Section 80C only if the mutual fund is an ELSS fund.

Most ELSS funds have names that clearly state they are ‘tax saver’ or ‘ELSS’. However, some don’t.

Every AMC has their own characteristic style of investing. You should explore the AMC and their over-all investment style before choosing a fund from them. Again, for this reason alone, you should avoid investing in new AMC.

7. Asset Under Management (AUM)

This refers to the amount of money being managed by an individual mutual fund. Different types of mutual funds have a different ideal size for AUM.

The below table is a good approximate guide to the ideal size of AUM for different types of mutual funds.

Mutual funds having an AUM under ₹100 crore should be avoided by new investors.

Fund Type

Typical AUM Size

Small-Cap Mutual Fund

₹5,000 crores

Mid-Cap Mutual Fund

₹8,000 crores

Large-Cap Mutual Fund

₹30,000 crores

ELSS Mutual Fund

₹15,000 crores

8. Simpler method: rating

If all of the above methods seem very tedious and intimidating to you, there is a simpler way to choose a mutual fund. Use the rating of a mutual fund to know which fund is best in any given category.

The star rating of every mutual fund is mentioned of its page on Groww.

Best ELSS Mutual Funds

Review

This fund was launched in 2007 and has since performed well in almost all cycles of the markets. It has given a return of around 15% which is a good return despite this fund having seen the bad market conditions of 2008 and 2011.

Facts

Review

Reliance Tax Saver Fund started off as a mid-cap mutual fund. Over time, market conditions made it a large-cap fund as the companies it held grew.

Often, mid-cap companies grow to become large-cap companies. It is a very flexible fund. It has changed its portfolio from time to time to ensure good performance.

Reliance Taxsaver (ELSS) Fund has beaten its category average and benchmark by a large margin regularly. This fund also benefits from a stable fund manager. Ashwani Kumar has been the fund manager of this fund since September 2005, when it was launched.

This fund is a little over 10 years old. It has returned an astounding rate of return of around 16% since inception.

Facts

Review

Launched in March 1996, this fund is over twenty years old. It has a mind-boggling annualized return of around 26% since when it was launched. Aditya Birla Sun Life Tax Relief 96 routinely outperforms the benchmark. As anybody would guess, this fund is a 5 star rated fund on Groww.

Unlike many ELSS mid-cap mutual funds that have grown to hold mostly large-cap stocks, Aditya Birla Sun Life Tax Relief 96 holds more than half of its assets in mid-cap companies.

The fund manager of this fund has not changed since 2006 making this fund very stable.

Facts

Review

IDFC Tax Advantage (ELSS) Fund has beaten the benchmark every year since starting out apart from their first year. The fund even managed to stay on the green side of the benchmark in the rough weather year of 2011.

IDFC Tax Advantage (ELSS) Fund uses its deep understanding of growth potential in small and medium-sized companies to identify potential. The fund has a significantly higher investment in mid and small-cap companies.

Facts

Review

This fund was launched in 2006. Since 2006, this mutual fund has given a return of around 15%. The returns in the last 5 years are 19.34%. In the last 3 years, the return was 16.77%. In the last one year, the performance climbed up to 23.98%.

3. Choose a method of investment.

If opting for SIP

If you choose to go for SIP, click ‘Start SIP’. Upon loading of the next page, fill in the amount and choose the date on which the SIP will be deducted every month.

Click ‘Start SIP’. You will be redirected to a BSE page confirming your order. Verify your order details and make payment by logging into your net banking account.

If opting for lump sum

On the fund’s page, click the ‘Invest One Time’ button. Upon loading of the next page, fill in the amount and click on ‘Invest One Time’.

You will be redirected to a BSE page confirming your order. Verify your order details and make payment by looking into your net banking account.

It really is that simple!

5 Important Things to Remember About ELSS Funds

1. ELSS Lock-in Period

ELSS funds come with a 3 year lock-in period. You cannot withdraw the amount invested before three years from the investment. After three years, you can opt to redeem the amount invested or let it stay invested.

Lock-in for SIP: The three year lock-in period applies for each individual SIP. So, for example, the units of ELSS funds you bought in February 2016 can only be redeemed in February 2019. Likewise, the units of ELSS funds you bought in March 2016 can only be redeemed in March 2019.

Lock-in for lump sum: The lock-in period on investments in case of lump sum investments is fairly simple. You can redeem your investments 3 years from the date of investment.

2. Year of Tax Savings

The investment made will give you tax benefits only for that financial year.

Lump Sum Example: If you invest ₹1. 5 lakh in the financial year 2017-2018, you will get tax benefits in the financial year 2017-2018. The money invested that year will continue to remain locked-in for 3 years from the date of investment. Investing more than ₹1. 5 lakh in 2017-2018 will not give you any benefits in the next financial year.

SIP Example: You will get tax benefits on the total amount of SIP made in the current year only. To get the maximum tax benefit, your total SIP in the current financial year should be ₹1. 5 lakh. You won’t get any additional benefits if you exceed this amount. So if you want to invest a total of ₹1. 5 lakh in a year via SIP over 12 months, your monthly SIP amount should be ₹12,500 per month.

3. Total Benefits

The ₹1. 5 lakh tax exemption under Section 80C is not just for ELSS tax saving mutual funds. It includes all other exemptions under Section 80C. You can only claim benefits on a total of ₹1. 5 lakh under Section 80C.

Example: If you pay a total of ₹80,000 lakh on your children’s education, you have ₹70,000 worth of benefit left to be had from Section 80C. So you should be investing₹70,000 in an ELSS mutual fund.

4. Tax on Earnings From ELSS Funds

ELSS funds are equity mutual funds. Equity mutual funds don’t have any tax levied on them for redemption after 1 year.

ELSS funds are locked in for 3 years. Thus, the gains on them are tax-free. So ELSS mutual funds help you save tax while also earning you money that cannot be taxed.

5. You Do Not Have to Redeem After the Lock in Period Ends

If you feel your investment in an ELSS mutual fund is doing well, you can choose to remain invested in the ELSS fund even after the 3-year lock-in period.

It is not mandatory to redeem after the three-year lock-in period ends.

RESOURCES

Mutual fund investments are subject to market risks. Please read the scheme information and other related documents carefully before investing.

Past performance is not indicative of future returns. Please consider your specific investment requirements, risk tolerance, investment goal, time frame, risk and reward balance and the cost associated with the investment before choosing a fund, or designing a portfolio that suits your needs.

Groww is an investing platform where users can find the best mutual funds to invest in and can invest their money without any hassles. Groww provides objective evaluation of mutual funds and does not advice or recommend any mutual fund or portfolios. Investor shall invest with their own descretion. Groww does not guarantee any returns and safety of capital.

Groww helps investors in the following way

· By providing objective evaluation of products available on Groww

· By bringing up red flags, if any, involved in the products. However Groww does not guarantee to bring out all red flags

· By being transparent about fees and charges involved in investing in a product

· By clearly representing the risk associated with buying a product

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All transactions on Groww are safe and secure. Users can invest through SIP or Lumpsum using Netbanking through all supported banks. It uses BSE Star MF (with Member code 11724) as transaction platform.

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